1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a control lever device, and more particularly, to a control lever device suited for use in a game machine such as a driving game machine which allows a player to drive a vehicle like a car displayed on a monitor under the control of the player.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional popular type of driving game machine, a player sits on a seat simulating a driver's seat of a car which is provided with controllers such as a steering wheel, an accelerator pedal and a brake pedal, and controls the controllers while viewing a three-dimensional image displayed on a monitor composed of a cathode-ray tube and the like, thereby imitatively driving a car in the monitor. In such a conventional driving game machine, the running direction of the car is changed by operating the steering wheel, and the speed of the car is changed by using the accelerator pedal and the brake pedal, which produce a realistic feeling of actually driving the car.
As a means for increasing the complexity of driving operations and thereby adding more realism to the above-mentioned driving game machine, it is conceived that the body of the car is spun by turning the steering wheel while driving after the rear wheels have been locked by operating a hand brake which is provided for applying a braking force only to the rear wheels.
However, even if the above-mentioned driving game machine having a hand brake is practiced, unless the hand brake offers a feeling similar to an actual hand brake of a car, there is a fear that more realism will not be obtained, while driving operations of the car are made more complicated.